PEARLISHKA BURRUN, 15 years,
Student – Sodnac State Secondary School
Mauritius does not have a long history of cinematography although the island’s gorgeous landscapes suit shooting both for international films makers and for our nascent film industry. Twenty-five years ago the popular Bollywood movie Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, filmed in Mauritius, attracted other Bollywood producers to take advantage of the island’s scenery. Not to talk of the no less popular television serials ‘Paul and Virginia’.
As for film watchers they are simply addicted to Western and Indian movies. Hollywood, Bollywood, Kollywood and Tollywood are brand names in Mauritius. The movies are predominantly in French or Indian languages, with some English. To serve them we have not only MBC/TV, private televisions but several movie theatres of class – the Star Cinema within the Bagatelle Mall with no less than six screens and a total seating capacity of 1,200; the Cine Klassic Movie Theatre and Cinema Star at the Caudan Waterfront, and Cinema ABC in Rose Hill.
We have been amazed by the emotional, phenomenal, and terrific performances of legendary actors: Al Pacino, James Bond, Leonardo Di Caprio, Daniel Radcliffe, Julia Roberts, Emma Watson, Amitabh Bachchan, Sharukh khan, Rajinikanth, Sri Devi, Kajol, Rani Mukherjee, Priyanka Chopra-Jonas, Deepika Padukone, Dhanush and many more. Coming to television we have all been fans of: Ekta Kapoor and Gul Khan’s daily soaps starring: Shraddha Arya, Jennifer Winget, Harshad Chopda, Sharad Malhotra and many more. Now coming to Hollywood daily soaps: Matt LeBlanc, Courteney Cox, Jennifer Aniston and others.
Indeed, those kinds of entertainments are deeply interesting, but have we ever thought of putting cinematography on our island on solid bases? Yes, passionate people gave a try, they are still trying to do better but they are somewhere stuck because of lack of support. It all started with the production of home movies in the 1950s. Under the government of Sir Anerood Jugnauth, a Mauritius Film Development Corporation (MFDC) was created and placed under the aegis of the Ministry of Arts and Culture (1986), with the objective of encouraging the development of a film industry in Mauritius.
However, at the start, MFDC limited itself to play the intermediary to assist foreign film directors in obtaining permits to shoot on the island. This is how Bollywood producers came out with the record breaking movie Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, filmed in Mauritius in 1997, which brought, in a kind of ripple effect, an army of other Bollywood producers to the island. But on the local front we have sort of ‘bouz-fix’. Indeed, as it has been observed, for a long time the MFDC lacked the organizational stability to provide consistent support for local filmmakers.
But we must not be too critical of MFDC which has, in some ways, vulgarized the film production world among Mauritians with its paraphernalia – the camera which is the most essential equipment, the technical crew, the sets and location, casting agencies, producers, directors, actors, makeup artists, hair stylists, outfit designers, helpers and many more. It also familiarized locals with techniques such as: the lighting of the set, the choice of cameras, lenses, filters, and film stock, the camera angle, movements, and the integration of any special effects.
The first decades of the 21st century proved to be more productive for local filmmakers. In 2007 the Île Courts International Short Film Festival was established, run by the non-profit organization Porteurs d’Images. In 2013 a Film Rebate Scheme was established to provide both local and international filmmakers with a financial incentive to shoot on the island, and the terms of the rebate were extended in 2016. In October 2017 the Government initiated a Mauritius Cinema Week, and a second edition of the event was held in 2018. To name but a few of our local filmmakers, it suffice to name David Constantin, Harrikrisna Anenden, Miselaine Duval, Wassim Sookia. Not to forget Sada Rajiah and Vikram Jootun. And remember Bénarès (2006), directed and written by Barlen Pyamootoo, which became the first film in Mauritian Creole.
Still, a few questions need to be asked. For how long Mauritian talents will be kept in confinement? For how long will we organise short films competitions? Till when will art and culture be considered as secondary in Mauritius? We are conditioned since childhood that we must go to school, study well, get the maximum marks, pursue further studies, and get a suitable job. And the suitable job is either doctor or engineer, teacher, businessman. We have been brought up in a certain way: many of us were told that being in the cinematic world, does not bring anything. But if we do work hard and do things in the appropriate way, it will surely pay off as having a job is just not to be practised through obligations, but a job is normally something we love to do and in which we are prepared to make a career.
Now in schools, we are taught only academic subjects such as English, Maths and French. We do not have a continuous syllabus for drama or in some schools it does not even exist. We have all been under a certain pressure to be first in class as we are still scared being called an idiot or a lazy person by teachers and parents, unfit to get an entry to the university or have a suitable job. It also happens that students after school need to go for extra classes to supplement what is not taught in school, and it also happens that the child likes it so much that he neglects the other subjects. This is bound to happen as during this phase it may be difficult to maintain a balance.
Why don’t we try to integrate the so-called extra-curricular activities such as drama as main subjects. It is good to appreciate foreign talent, but we should not suppress the Mauritian ones. There are lots of people who have the talent, who dream to become part of the cinematic world and can develop new and interesting work, but they are being suppressed by various reasons. It’s not about recreating a Hollywood or Bollywood industry in Mauritius but it’s all about creating the Mauritian cinematography with our diverse and rich culture. I believe that having talent inside us can help us, as individuals, to find and realise his dream job. As we should understand that not everyone is versed in academics. With this change, having a fulltime working film industry in Mauritius would also benefit economically to the island, let alone contribute to the future embellishment of our paradise island.
